Faux Reclaimed Wood Bookshelves

T-minus 5 days before lift off to Italy! This week we are in Florida- one last hoorah before 12 months abroad. I am currently trying to get my life whittled down to one 44 lbs bag. I know- I know! It's gonna be tough and it's giving me some angst. It's not even the clothes & shoes, but more the every day objects that make like life easier, like a heat pack! ha!

Reclaimed Gray Farmhouse Table

Hey guys, this weekend we were in Forks, WA, launching yet another new product! lol Zack wrote a sort of prequel to the Twilight Saga and it was received super well at "Twilight Forever in Forks." You can check out the craziness in our Insta. We just flew back to Cali and are in the six week crunch before we move to Italy for a year! Life couldn't be more full and wonderful- speaking of wonderful, this farmhouse table is the bomb!

Stain Cabinetry like a Pro

We have spent most of the summer in Fresno, though that was not the original plan! It's been so sad to see the smoke filled air and know northern Cali is suffering. This project comes from Fresno - so i't's the perfect time to share it.  Now if you're like me, you would be skeptical to stain your own cabinets. But you can see my husband stained these while we were at a trade show! 

Raw Redwood into Rustic Barnwood Doors

AFTER

BEFORE

Hope you had a super great 4th of July! We spent ours in Eugene, Oregon, at their local parade, rodeo and fireworks. Amongst all the strangers I had a peculiar feeling, a feeling if familiarity and belonging. It made me stop. I looked all around me and saw my fellow Americans...And then in my mind's eye I could see Americans all over the country, gathered together, to give thanks for our independence and the freedom it represents. 

Farmhouse Pedestal Table

I'm writing this on Easter morning. Zack and I are in the Seattle area, and so, I am listening to the sound of Seattle rain. This year is a little more tender, we had to put our sweet pup, Beau Dog, down on Friday. It was unexpected. As my dogs are the only kids I've ever had, it's been a mournful weekend. All of us miss him terribly and having a loss on Good Friday made me grateful for Easter and all it means. Although we aren't by family here, we have our Easter rituals to lean on. We like to read the scriptures about resurrection, to go to church, to watch the 10 Commandments & Passion of the Christ. I hope you get to celebrate with your loved ones.

Stunning Reclaimed Cypress Countertop

Hope you guys are keeping warm this December, the weather in Sicily has been amazing! Thanksgiving was a "balmy" 61 degrees and this time last year it was 42! For the holiday we walked the town square and popped into the Catania Cathedral, final resting place of St Agatha.

Create & Hold White Washed Gray Cabinetry

I know what you're thinking, my cabinets are already painted so I'll never use this project. Stop right there, for one- this color can be used anywhere- on furniture or walls, etc. For two- big box stores, like Home Depot, sell unfinished, raw alder cabinets! This home sold for tens of millions and you can have this look very easily! You could get this VERY high-end look for a fraction of the cost. 

Low-Cost Alternative Wood Wall

Hey guys! This week's project idea comes from a high-end resort designer. She wanted a much wider, 12' planks for her design, but also wanted the warmth of wood. In the end, she found a wood plank alternative that save money and offers a wide range of customizability. 

Red Cedar into Barnwood Walls

Hey Friends! I hope everyone is safe after all the terrible weather this month. We had to evacuate Florida and it took over two weeks to finally get away from Hurricane Irma! Initially we weren't sure where to evacuate to, since Irma kept moving. Then once we all knew Naples would get hit, of course, the roads were a nightmare at that point. 

Restoration Hardware Trestle Inspired Table

You know I love to get that Restoration Hardware color, especially for this Salvage Trestle Wood Table. You know what they say, "good things come to those who wait." Any ways, I wanted RH, but with their tables are too stinking expensive! It did take me forever to plan the project, find the table, and get the time to do it, but I fought the law and guess what... I won!

Barnwood-Looking Cabinets Tutorial

I have a heavy heart. Zack and I have been married 15 (wow!) years and have not been able to have kids. But we do have this 14 year old cat. He is the most wonderful feline, in a class of his own. He's a big, fat, orange tabby. And though he's not the prettiest kitty, he is the most loving animal you will ever find. We first got him when we were married less than a year. He was a stray kitten that we found in Hawaii. He walked right up to the doorstep of the first apartment we'd lived in. And he was purring his little, fluffy brains out. Zack and I were still in undergrad then, so Zack picks up the fluff ball and tells him, "If you're here after my full day, I'll keep you." So Zack is gone at school for about 12 hours. When he gets home, sure enough, there's our cat on the doorstep waiting. We took him inside and gave him a flea bath and that cat purred the entire time! Through a bath! I have begged God a million times to let that kitty live until Zack and I are blessed with a child. Well, our kitty had a stroke tonight. He's still with us, and I hope he can pull out of it, but not looking good. I know many of you are animal lovers and can relate. 

Sliding Reclaimed Gray Doors

Hey guys- you're gonna love what I have for you this week. This tutorial can save you major bucks, if you want to buy a door stained like this, it would cost you around 2-3K! I'll show you how to turn any alder, sliding barndoor from Home Depot into a gorgeous, custom masterpiece.

Rustic Beam Makeover

When Zack and I were in our MBA program, one of our teachers mentored us. So our teacher bought himself a phat (ginormous) mansion on Newport Beach, but it was a bit dated. He was able to use my product for several applications, but one of them was this rad ceiling. This tutorial is to help you turn existing stained wood into a weathered-looking awesomeness!

Rustic Cherry Kitchen Custom Reface

A lot of us have old, outdated cabinets and when they're in terrible physical shape, it's a no brainer. Replace the whole thing! But what do you do when the cabinets are solid wood or pretty new but ugly, not your style, or replacing is not in the budget? A cabinet reface is a great choice for any of those options. A reface can include either new doors & re-stained boxes or just re-staining both the doors and boxes. This cherry kitchen was a reface and it looks like 100% custom job now!

DIY Restoration Hardware Gray Oak Finish

Today's project is sort of exciting, because before reactive stains we didn't have a way to create the Restoration Hardware finishes we love. Now in just a couple of steps, with minimal work, you can have the RH look in your home, and you don't have to spend $3K for one piece of furniture! So let's get to it, we are going to DIY the Restoration Hardware's Gray Oak Finish on oak, just like they do.

DIY [Almost] Barnwood Wall

This tutorial is to help you turn a boring corner of your home into an amazing rustic, barnwood wall. You only need inexpensive, raw cedar from any big box store and we'll turn it into a weathered looking ones. These boards cost 2 bucks each, so you can do this wall for $150, including stain!

Barnwood-Looking Cedar Beams

Don't you think it's funny how your eyes are attracted to what you want? Whether it's something menial like a possession or item, or something deeper like a spouse or child. I seem to find myself paying attention to different things nowadays. I wonder if this means a mark in time or a fork in the road? I will let you know if, what I have my eye on, I achieve! 

This week's project is a simple makeover with a whole lot of room appeal. When you need to stain a wood that begins really red or orange, it's very difficult to cover that original wood tone. Here's how to do it right! Ready?

Rustic Brown "Barnwood" Siding Tutorial

Hey! This is a new stain I'm showcasing today! You're going to love the softer colors it achieves and the warmer barnwood tones. This year you'll notice that the trend moves towards gray/browns, or warmer grays. This product is perfect for that! I mean, just look at this ceiling!

DIY EBONIZED White Oak Floors

The other afternoon I was sitting on the beach reading the Spring issue of Magnolia Journal. I came across an article that struck me to my core and I thought I'd share with you. There was a story about a woman who decided to purchase a ranch rather than retire from her normal job to a life of leisure. She was not a "rancher" so she had a lot to learn. On her first day of horse back riding lessons, the horse was spooked and when it jolted, the reins were wrapped around her fingers, pulling off the tips of two of them. She rushed to the hospital but the finger tips were lost. She became doubtful and fearful of her decision to start a new "ranching career." How many of us can relate? I know when I started the MBA I had similar doubts that I was making the right choices and that I was cut out for the program. And again, starting as an entrepreneur, I had those doubts and risked our income anyway. Well, the woman's daughter writes her a letter, and I'm paraphrasing, "If you continue to live by Fear, the world will get smaller and smaller." I can tell you for a surety that this is true. Live by faith, live with joy, and love failure, because it teaches you something. Let's commit to live without fear, the best we can- ok?

DIY Rustic Brown Bar Top

How do we define freedom? For me, its in being an artist. I'm not the kind of artist that paints portraits, but I wish I was. I don't sculpt and I don't really care to. I don't do pottery and when I do, it doesn't feel like art. Most people don't even recognize what I do as art until they experience one of my pieces. Here's what I do. I invent colors and I design furniture. For me, when I'm creating and beautifying a piece of furniture its as simple as taking a breath. The only sensation I can compare it to is that feeling you get when you're sitting on an airplane and the jet takes off and you suddenly find yourself giddy, breathless, excited,  and high above the clouds. Thats when the vision becomes clear in my minds eye. I take that breath and hold it till I can't hold it anymore. Then when I release the vision into the reality of this world for your physical eyes to see, something magical happens.